On the 13th of February, in this year, the countess of Charolois was brought to bed of a daughter in the town of Brussels. At her christening, the dauphin, the duchess of Burgundy, and the lady of Ravestein were sponsors. The dauphin named her Mary, in honour of the queen his mother, who bore that name. Great feasts took place on this occasion throughout the duke's territories,—and in the great towns there were illuminations, and thanksgivings were offered up to God.
A short time after this event, the duke of Burgundy sent again the same embassy, namely, the lord de Chimay and sir Simon de Lalain, to assure the king of France, that the dauphin had come to him of his own accord, and to find means of satisfying the king on this subject.
About this time died the patriarch of Antioch, brother to the chancellor of France, Juvenel des Ursins, to the archbishop of Rheims, and to another knight at arms, who were four brothers much in the good graces of the king of France.
[A.D. 1457.]
CHAP. LXIX.
AN EMBASSY FROM THE KING OF HUNGARY ARRIVES AT TOURS, AND IS HONOURABLY RECEIVED BY THE KING OF FRANCE.—THE KING OF HUNGARY DIES.—THE FRENCH TAKE THE SEAPORT OF SANDWICH BY STORM.
In the year 1457, the king of France, anxious to attack his enemies, more particularly the Saracens and other unbelievers in the catholic faith, made an alliance with the potent king of Hungary, who was sovereign of three kingdoms, namely, Hungary, Poland, and Bohemia. In consequence of this alliance, the king of Hungary was to espouse the princess Magdalen, the king of France's daughter; and very many great barons, knights, and lords of the three kingdoms were sent as ambassadors to France to be present at the betrothing: even churchmen were of this embassy, such as the archbishop of Cologne and the bishop of Passau,—to the amount, in all, of six hundred horse.
When they arrived at Tours in their various dresses, the king was at Montils le Tours, a place hard by,—but the queen and princess were in Tours. The ambassadors presented to the queen a rich robe of cloth of gold, embroidered with pearls and jewels, and another, equally sumptuous, to the princess, together with a splendid waggon hung on springs[234]. Many of the principal lords of the king's household went about a league from Tours to meet them.
They were handsomely received by the king and his court, and great entertainments were made for them, especially by the count de Foix, who gave a grand feast on Thursday before Christmas, in the abbey of St Julian at Tours, where all the princes and lords of the court were present. The tables were served, in the utmost abundance, with all sorts of delicacies, such as pheasants, partridges, bustards, cranes, wild geese, rabbits without number, fat capons, six score quarts of hypocras, as well white as red, removes,—morrice dances of children dressed as savages issuing from a rock, singers, trumpets, clarions, and various devices,—insomuch that this dinner cost eighteen hundred crowns, besides the rich presents to the guests.
These feasts were continued to the ambassadors waiting for the betrothing of the princess to the king of Hungary, by procuration, soon after Christmas. But it has been truly said, that often man proposes, and God disposes; for on the morrow of Christmas-day, the melancholy news of the king of Hungary's death was brought to the king of France, which caused great sorrow to him and his whole court.